What is common to memory retrieval and relational reasoning? Testing neural overlap in anterior lateral prefrontal cortex
Abstract
Anterior lateral prefrontal cortex (aLPFC) has been consistently implicated in retrieval monitoring and relational reasoning. However, it is unknown whether aLPFC supports a cognitive process that is common to memory retrieval and reasoning tasks. To inform this question, a first step is to ascertain whether there is, within individuals, spatial overlap in aLPFC between tasks. A prior study found overlap in activation of left aLPFC between verbal analogy and source memory retrieval tasks, using tightly matched word stimuli (Westphal et al., 2016). To assess whether this overlap in activation extends to other stimulus types and task designs, and another sensory modality, we collected fMRI data from 35 healthy young adults as they completed an associative memory retrieval task along with four variants of a relational reasoning paradigm that reliably engages left aLPFC. The reasoning tasks followed a 2 (visual/auditory modality) x 2 (spatial/featural relations) x 2 (low/high relational complexity) design. In the associative memory task, participants studied word pairs and decided whether the two words were related. At retrieval, they viewed pairs of previously seen words and judged whether the pair was Intact (words paired together at encoding) or Recombined (previously seen words recombined into new pairs). Response times were slower for Recombined vs. Intact pairs, consistent with heightened retrieval monitoring. As predicted, aLPFC was more active for Recombined than Intact…
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